A Brief History of Fremont Street (cont.)

North side of the street

Third to Fourth

People forget that Fremont Street was, in many ways, our Main Street.  Perhaps the most unique Main Street in the country.  As we have talked about the first four blocks on the south side of the street were filled with saloons and gambling halls.  The north side of the street had its fair share of saloons and gambling as well.

Fifth Street shopping

But as you got closer to Fifth Street (now Las Vegas Blvd), there were houses and non-gaming businesses.  Stores of all kinds that are necessary in a community where people lived and needed a place to shop.  And Las Vegas, in that regard, was no different from any other city.  Shopping in the shadow of all that neon and gambling hardly warranted a raised eye-brow most of the time.  It was just an accepted way of life for those of us who lived there.  Until the Boulevard Mall was built in the mid-1960s, there was no other place to shop for the necessities, except on Fremont Street.

On the corner of Third and Fremont across from the Melody Lane Restaurant was Bond's Jewelry Store.  Next door was Rex Bell's Western Wear. Bell was known to have one of the best selections of Western Wear in Las Vegas. Quite often, Rex's father-in-law, King Bow would be hanging out in the store swapping stories with the customers.  Bell opened the store in the mid-1940s when he and his sons moved into town from their ranch out near Searchlight.  Bell was getting interested in politics and would be elected Lt. Governor.  He died in 1962 while running for Governor.  Upstairs, were professional offices.  The corner office overlooking Fremont Street belonged to Mike Hines, attorney and he had his name written on windows that faced out on Third and on Fremont.  Today, the building is Fabulous LV Jewelry and Gifts.

Cragin and Pike Insurance Agency (call Paul McDermit and Frank Kerestesi) was next door to Bell's Western Wear.  Ernie Cragin, the senior partner, had originally been in the building across the street that housed the Majestic Theater (and he may have owned that building, but I'm not sure).  In the mid-1920s, Cragin built the El Portal Theater next door to his Insurance Company. 

The El Portal Theatre

The El Portal was the first air-conditioned theater in Las Vegas. Built by Charles Alexander MacNelledge, the hacienda style building was an immediate hit. There was no front signage, just the marquee. The sign that is still there today was not part of the original theater. The only signage originally was the roof-top sign. All that remains of the original theater are the interior beams and the exterior facade. The theater had a balcony and a strict segregation policy. Unlike Lloyd Katz, Cragin did not believe that blacks and whites should sit together in a movie theater.  In the early days there was a mighty Wurlitzer organ, luxury box seats and chandeliers. The El Portal also pioneered late, late screenings to accommodate the men and women who worked swing shift and could not see the movies during regular business hours. Frank Sinatra's film "The Joker is Wild" premiered at the El Portal in 1957. Ernie Cragin was the mayor of Las Vegas during the 1940s

Today, the Cragin and Pike Insurance Building is the El Portal Luggage Shop.  The El Portal Theater is no longer a movie theater but a souvenir and western gifts shop.   Cragin and Pike is still in business located on West Charleston and run by Frank Kerestesi's son, Tom.

El Portal Wurlitzer and curtain - 1928

El Portal Refrigeration - advertising cool-air and the original marquee

El Portal chandelier and interior beams - 1928

El Portal Theatre - "The Gateway"

El Portal before the Fremont Street Canopy

El Portal 1991

The businesses next door to El Portal

Next door to the El Portal Theater was Christensen's Mens Wear. This was a high end store that catered to men's fashions. The Christensen family is one of the oldest families in Las Vegas. It is now Coyote Accessories and Gifts. Next to Christensen's was Sam's Cafe, a small local restaurant.  It is now the western side of Picadilly Circus and Pizza. 

The eastern section of that building was at one time, one of the last remaining houses on Fremont Street. When neon designer, Brian Leming, was in high school he remembers cruising Fremont Street and seeing an elderly woman outside watering her lawn as the teenagers drove by and waved to her.  The house was finally torn down in the mid-1960s and became Gallenkamp Shoes. My mother would take me in there every year to buy me saddle shoes for school. 

On the corner was Trader Bill's, one of the best Leather and Western Gift Shops on Fremont Store. I used to love to go into that store just because it always smelled like leather.  It had a large, flicker bulb arrow pointing down towards the door.  he outside was made to look like a movie set Trading Post.  Inside, it was leather heaven but they also carried lots of Indian rugs and jewelry. Originally, it had a wooden sidewalk before paved sidewalks were installed in the 1950s. It is now a Harley Davidson store. Kudos to Harley Davidson for keeping the sign and the facade.

Trader Bill's circa 1960

Trader Bill's today

Special thanks to Allen Sandquist and UNLV

A Brief History of Downtown (cont.)

Fourth and Fremont

When I was a kid, there was no better place on Fremont Street than Coronets Five, Dime and 25 cent Store.  Trader Bill's was a very close second because of that wonderful smell of leather, but Coronets had toys and games for kids.  It may have even had a soda fountain but don't quote me on that until I do some more research.

Coronets stood on the corner of Fourth and Fremont and had a roof top neon sign that was a thing of beauty.  Roof top signs were popular on Fremont.  The El Portal Theater's only signage for awhile was its roof top sign.  The El Cortez had a roof top sign, the Pioneer Club had one (still there but endangered) and the one across the street on the old Las Vegas Pharmacy pointing towards the Pioneer Club.

Next to Coronets was Jerry's Snack Bar which became a Jewelry Store.  Next door to that was Orange Julius.   Orange Julius drinks were heaven on earth on a hot summer day.

Next to Orange Julius was the Carl Ray Professional Building.  This building was built around 1920 with a turquoise front and gold fleck lettering on a sign above the door.  Each office upstairs had gold fleck lettering on the windows so that the doctors, dentists and attorneys could advertise their offices. 

Next to the Carl Ray Building was Chic Hecht's Store for Women.  We didn't have big department stores and certainly no malls until Irwin Molasky built the Boulevard Mall in the mid-1960s, so women who wanted fashionable clothes shopped downtown.  My mother bought her second wedding dress at Chic Hecht's.

Next door to Chic Hecht's was Mr. B's.  We are still researching Mr. B's. Next door to Mr. B's was Berta's Specialities.   This was one of those stores in the 1960s that sold busts of Beethoven and what passed for cultured items to display in your home.

On the corner of Fifth (Las Vegas Blvd) and Fremont was a Chevron Service Station.  We had a lot of gas stations in the downtown area and as you will see in the upcoming pages, many of them were on Fremont Street or one of the near by feeder streets. 

Before the days of the highway interstate and freeways, Las Vegas Blvd was the main road to travel to Los Angeles or to Salt Lake City, and as luck would have it, it intersected with Fremont Street.  Having that main thoroughfare helped turn Fremont Street into Glitter Gulch with all its neon and flicker bulb signage. 

Today, where Coronets once stood is today a Walgreens and the Neonopolis Parking Garage.

Where Mr. B's was first a bar called Race Rock and is now the tiki bar, Mickey Finzz.

Where Berta's Specialities and the Chevron Station once stood is now Hennessy's Tavern.

A Brief History of Downtown (cont.)

Fitzgeralds - at Third and Fremont

This property was originally a mercantile store shortly after the land auction of 1905.  It was owned by a couple who spent most of their lives traveling around the Southwest.

In its heart of the community era, Sewell's Market was on this corner and was one of the most successful markets in the downtown area.  When Sewell's moved to another location, this became the site of CH Baker Shoes.  Next door was Pott's Store for Men. 

CH Baker Shoe Ad

CH Baker Shoes was a wonderful store, very popular with showgirls and women who were interested in the fashions of the day.  Kids, boys especially,  would have there faces pressed against the glass looking at the glamourous women trying on shoes.

In 1971, CH Baker and Potts Mens Store were closed and the property became an office building.  Next door were Schwartz Brothers Mens Wear (I guess guys still needed more mens stores back then), Zale's Jewelers, the Silver Dollar Trading Post, a McDonald's and a Thrifty Drugs.

Before it was a McDonalds, that property was the Hickory Wood Pit BBQue which had roasting chickens in the window.  Old timers still fondly remember that smell. 

In 1937, JC Penney's had a store and catalogue department at 319 Fremont Street.  It was an old brick building (still is) with a second floor.  Old timers remember the second floor was where the change was made.  Pneumatic tubes ran from the second floor to the check out counters and sales clerks would take your money, put it in the tube with your bill, press the button and the tube would carry your money upstairs where change was made and the tube sent back down to the counter.  Penney's later moved further east on Fremont where the Fremont Medical Building is today.

When Penney's moved, the property likely became Thrifty Drugs.  The second floor was where large items such as furniture were sold, a rather novel idea fordrug stores in todays' way of thinking. Today, it is Tiffany's Souvenir Shop.

Tiffany's Souvenirs Gifts

Next to Tiffany's on the western corner of Fourth and Fremont today sits the Western Village with a gold rush miner on the roof.  This originally was Indian Joe's Souvenirs and Western Indian Wear.  Next door was Franklin's Women's Wear in a small building but it made up in length what it lacked in width. 

In 1979, the Sundance Casino opened on the corner.  In 1987, it became Fitzgerald's and the mascot was a leprechaun known as Mr. Lucky.  When the hotel rebranded itself a few years ago, Mr. Lucky was sent to the Neon boneyard.  While in the boneyard, he met with an unfortunate fire of suspicious nature and was badly damaged.

Special thanks to Allen Sandquist!